


The Fall of The Wolf

by GaryOwen1965



Category: Star Fox Series
Genre: A harem for one lucky human guy, Big Breasts, Blood, Death, Drama, Enemies to Friends, Eventual Smut, F/M, Fox - Freeform, Friends to Lovers, Genderbend Wolf and Fox because why not?, German Shepherd, Gunplay, Harems, Human, Human on Anthro, Lynx - Freeform, Male Human on Female Anthro, Robot, Romance, Rule 63, Siberian Husky, Slow Burn, Smut, Spaniel, Violence, husky - Freeform, serval - Freeform, wolf - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-04
Updated: 2020-10-19
Packaged: 2021-02-27 11:55:31
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 13,695
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22106674
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GaryOwen1965/pseuds/GaryOwen1965
Summary: The notorious Wolf O'Donnell is now nothing but a glorified 'licensed mercenary' under the command of General Pepper. She feels as if it couldn't get any worse than this. Well, she was right; the complete opposite happened. When a human is brought into her life and turns her whole world upside down. When she falls for him, hard, will she work up the courage to tell him how she feels, or will Miyu, Fox, and the brand-new members of Star Wolf get to him first?Contains big-boobed anthro girls and then some. Wolf is angsty and, unsurprisingly, juvenile with her newfound romantic feelings. Mild language, violence, and some sexual content. May contain lemons later on. Hopefully. Crossposted on Fanfiction.net and SoFurry.com
Relationships: Fay (Star Fox)/OC, Miyu Lynx/OC, Original Female Characters/OC, Wolf O'Donnell/OC
Kudos: 17





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> So, this is just a little something I came up with two years ago, but it was not what it is now. It started out as a Krystal x Human fanfiction, then turned into this. And I must say, I'm really proud of this damn thing. Hope you people enjoy.
> 
> P.S. Just changed the title because it just didn't sit well with me. Plus, there's something else out there that is also "The Beginning of Something Wonderful".

_Approximately 2.73 light years from Earth..._

It was another typical day in space for the crew of the _USS Einstein_. The ship was old, outdated, and way past favorable service for Earth's massive space fleet. It used to be a ship of high speed and maneuverability, and had numerous amounts of hard-hitting weaponry; now, it was a stripped down mining frigate/research vessel, tasked with exploring the unknown reaches of space beyond the Sol System for rare ores and minerals as well as searching for intelligent life, if there was any out there. Life aboard the _Einstein_ was not very exciting to most of its crew. The reason for this atmosphere on the ship was because it was very rare to find an asteroid stock full of precious ore and/or minerals, and not once have they found a planet capable of sustaining an intelligent alien species. But when they did manage to find a lone asteroid or an asteroid belt that was worthwhile to the crew, the ship would shudder and creak from the mass scrambling that was similar to the Black Tuesday and Friday shopping spree. Only one crew member found life on the _Einstein_ interesting and worth serving on.

His name was James Beckham Hayes, a twenty-five-year-old engineer who's also the son of a critically-acclaimed naval officer. However, his connection/relationship makes no difference to the higher-ranking staff as he is treated as a regular crew member. James was a tech wizard and a grease monkey, and was very good at his job, being able to fix anything on the ship that needed fixing. It might have been a dull job for him, but at least it kept him occupied both physically and mentally.

James wasn't really a social person, preferring the company of his tools and a reprogrammed EV-6S maintenance bot. He was a very reclusive person, avoiding interaction with everyone, even his own parents. Despite this, he had caught the eyes of many women back on Earth and on the _Einstein_ over the past eight years since high school, but ignored any and all of their attempts to gain his attention. James wasn't 'supermodel-level' attractive, but he did have a certain charismatic air around him that many women just couldn't resist. Blond-haired, silvery-blue-eyed, and a healthy build, both in body and appearance, James was the one desire for most of the girls on board and back home.

 _"Attention all crew members,"_ the P.A. screeched loudly overhead above James's workspace, _"An asteroid containing high concentrations of nickel, iron, gold, copper, and zinc has been detected approximately three clicks bearing two-dash-five-dash-seven. Mining crews one through five report to the main hangar for departure. Repeat; mining crews one through five report to the main hangar for departure."_

James turned to his work after the temporary distraction and continued welding a piece of split pipe back together. A squeaky warble came from his right and he looked at the disc with hanging, wiry appendages hovering next to him, its main front optic glowing a sapphire blue. "Don't worry, Tim. We won't be going out there anytime soon, okay?" Another warble and James cracked a small smile before going to welding the split pipe. "Yes, I know they can make me go out at any time, but they won't. They need me in here to keep the Einstein shipshape."

 _Vrr-borp-beep! Woo,_ the bot shuddered. James snorted.

"So? If they don't like me, it's not my problem. Listen: just don't worry about it. Let's get back to work. I have a nice, cool bed waiting for me and I don't want to miss my nap."

_Beep-beep! Worp-vrrt-ree-woo._

"Tell me about it," James said with a chuckle. Silence fell on the room; no sound save for the hissing and crackling of the plasma torch. Finally, after about two minutes, the pipe was sealed and the secondary oxygen system was restored. After checking to make sure there were no cracks or weakened areas or holes that might have made his work all for nothing, James packed up his equipment and slung the compact bag over his shoulder as he stood up. "Hey Tim. Play my personal top hits, would ya? The walk back to our abode is going to be boring."

 _Beep-boop-borp,_ the robot squeaked happily as he accessed his data banks and started the playlist. James hummed along with the song, passing by his coworkers toiling in the lower area of the _Einstein_. The song was upbeat-to James, at least-and was among his personal top ten list of hot rock songs. He had his own unique taste in a variety of songs, most of them from the late-20th century to the 21st century. Some people, including women if they hadn't fallen for him already, found him weird because of his music choice.

James stopped at a set of elevator doors, and he called the elevator down to his current floor. While he waited, he whistled the final chorus to his song before it finally ended. Then the doors opened, and James stepped in and pressed a button. The doors closed and the cabin jolted sharply before it smoothed out and took its only occupant to the crew quarter on Deck 03, about five levels up from the Sublevel Deck, where the veins of the _Einstein_ were. Some muzak played through the speakers above James, though it was blotted out by James's louder and faster-paced music. The cabin slowed and came to a stop. The doors opened with a ding and James stepped and immediately hung a left to his personal quarters.

Room 203, James's private living space. He pulled out a keycard from his breast pocket and inserted it into the scanner. There was a second of silence, then a high-pitched beep and James removed the card and stepped inside, the doors opening and closing as he entered and cleared the doorway. The room itself was not very big, but it was better than sharing with five other people like most crew members did. At least there was one thing the captain granted because of his connection to his father. That and the fact that the captain and James's father were good friends.

James tossed the tool bag to the side before he stripped out of his work clothes, revealing a young, healthy, and slightly muscular body. Left in nothing but a pair of boxers and a white undershirt, James walked into the bathroom to wash up. Once finished with his shower, he put on a fresh pair of boxers and basketball shorts and climbed into his queen-sized bed. Tim zipped around the room until he came to a rest on his portable charger James smiled at the bot's puppy-like hyper-enthusiasm before he clapped his hands and the lights switched off. He rolled onto his side so that his back faced Tim, and closed his eyes. He soon succumbed to the need for sleep that plagued him and fell into a deep slumber, unaware that disaster lay ahead and awaited for him and the entire crew of the _Einstein_.


	2. Discovery

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The CDF chase what is thought to an old enemy believed to be dead, only to stumble upon something they've never seen before...

It's been five days; five days since the call went out; five days since the fleet was scrambled; and five days of searching in vain for suspected Venom activity on the edges of the Lylat System. Captain Casey, commander of the CMS Acolyte, was also in charge of the CDF Third Fleet, which consisted mainly of twenty cruisers, twelve battleships, four carriers, and the Acolyte as flagship. The Third Fleet was small, compared to other CDF fleets, but was just as decorated and recognized for their courage and valor in battle.

Captain Henry Casey Jr. has served aboard the Acolyte for nearly ten years, and has been in service with the CDF for a total of thirty years. He was ready for retirement, being at the age of fifty, but General Pepper has asked him to partake in this one last mission before he can retire. Even though he was reluctant to agree to do so, he decided that he should at least complete one more mission before returning to his wife and kids. Besides, his father was to the aged blood hound, and Pepper saw Henry's father in him, a compliment that almost brought the cheetah to tears. Why not one more favor for his father's best friend and his mentor?

Henry let out a tried sigh and leaned back in his chair. Besides the other thirty-six ships (plus the Acolyte) under his command, there was the matter of keeping a watchful eye on the newly-formed Star Wolf. Even though Wolf O'Donnell was under strict CDF surveillance and command, Henry, along with the entire Lylat, couldn't help but feel that she should be imprisoned for life. Instead, General Pepper had several of the charges against her dropped, a lesser sentence given, and last but not least, a seven-year probation. Everyone in the Lylat went into an uproar at the news of Wolf O'Donnell being allowed to walk free. And now, the ex-rogue mercenary commandeered an old, beat up blockade runner, and led three CDF recruits as her new Star Wolf team. In addition, two Star Fox members were selected, by Wolf, to be on the team. Despite that, Casey and everyone else in the Lylat were not put to ease.

"Sir! We've picked up something on the scanners!" one of the deck crew announced.

Casey sat up, now fully alert and ready, and straightened out his uniform. "Where is it?" he asked.

The one who spoke up, the navigator, was silent for a moment, then replied, "Ten klicks off our port bow, bearing zero-nine-seven at...zero knots, sir."

"Any signs of activity?" Casey rose to his feet.

The navigator shook his head. "Negative. sir. The ship seems to be...hang on. I think I've got something." He held an earpiece from his headphones closer to his ear, then turned to Casey. "It's a distress signal, sir."

"How recent?"

"Checking...five days old sir."

"Patch it through, and broadcast it to the rest of the fleet," Casey said quickly.

"Yes sir." The navigator turned back to his station, pressed a series of buttons, and took off his headphone. A blue screen popped up in front of the main viewport of the bridge, before it materialized into a video recording, revealing a mysterious creature that no one had ever seen before. To everyone's surprise, this creature spoke Cornerian Common, and they appeared to be distressed:

 _"We don't have much time left before they break through,"_ they said over their shoulder. Wherever they were, it was dimly lit by the red glow from the emergency lighting. There were also several more of the beings, all having different faces, colors, and body shapes, and they were all taking what appeared to be a 'last stand' stance. _"My name is Captain Eddie Smith of the USS Einstein, and we have been boarded by unknown hostiles. If there are any friendly ships nearby, and you get this, we need immediate assistance."_

Everyone, including Casey, had grim, sad faces as they listened. A muffled bang followed by an explosion caused the captain in the recording to turn to the left. They cursed and pulled something from their right hip and took aim with it. Yellow flashes came from the object and the top of it slid back, ejecting brass pieces from it. _"There starting to break through!"_ one of the other creatures in the background shouted frantically.

 _"Hold out for as long as you can!"_ the captain shouted as they took aim again and fired. A roar of pain came from off-screen, one of which that Casey recognized as a Venomian soldier. To add to his suspicions, red laser bolts came from the left, another hint to the ones responsible for the attack on this newly discovered species. _"Keep firing!"_ A scream was heard in the background and a body flew through the air like a ragdoll. _"Do not let them take the bridge, people! Let them have it-"_ A large explosion was heard and the entire screen cut out to static.

The bridge fell silent and all hands looked to Casey for their next set of orders. The cheetah was silently and grimly processing what he had just witnessed. On one hand, there was the discovery of an entirely new intelligent alien species. On the other, there was the growing suspicion that Venom was behind the attack on that ship. He pondered on what he was supposed to do next, and he quickly came to a decision. Turning to crew in charge of the comms, he said, "Get word out to General Pepper immediately. And while you're at it, send a call to both Star Wolf and Star Fox. I have a feeling that we'll need them for when we search that ship." He then turned to a female dingo, the one in charge of managing search-and-rescue ops. "Get Sergeant Phoenix and her team ready for launch. We are going to see if there are any survivors."

The dingo nodded and departed from the bridge, which had now burst to life from the issued orders. Despite what he said to the ops manager, Casey knew that the likelihood of finding survivors, especially after an attack by Venom, was very slim to none. Then there was the matter of calling Star Wolf. He silently cursed and slid solemnly into his seat and sighed, rubbing his temple with one hand. "I better not regret this," he said to himself.


	3. Contact (Rewrite)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A rewritten/edited chapter that I was not satisfied with.
> 
> James comes face to face with his alien boarders, becoming the first human to make 'contact' with an extraterrestrial race. What do they hold in store for him? And he for they?

Wolf O'Donnell, rogue mercenary extraordinaire, notorious for her unforgiving and intolerant nature, is now a guinea pig for the CDF, serving as a 'licensed mercenary' for none other than General Pepper himself.

Wolf was just a normal lupine, with a grey coat of fur, white underbelly fur that ran from her muzzle just below her stomach, a bushy tail, short pointed ears, and a mane of fur that acted as hair and was pulled back into a ponytail. She also wore an eyepatch over one of her eyes; a grim reminder of a past she was trying so desperately to forget. Wolf wore a purple vest, a pair of dark grey pants, a black tank top that reached just above her stomach, showing off a bit of her midriff, and a pair of grey boots. She had killer looks, as in, if it weren't for her past reputation, she'd have a significant other to come home to like so many Cornerians in the Lylat.

But, as a mercenary under the supervision of the CDF, this was her only chance to right all the wrongs she has ever done, so she didn't bother wasting the time to find the 'perfect someone' for herself.

Since Star Wolf was allowed to be reinstated and continued, General Pepper gave Wolf a handful of CDF recruits, fresh from the academy, to fill in the missing slots left by Panther, Leo, and Andrew. Wolf rejected all but three recruits - all female - and enlisted, with permission, the help of Miyu and Fay. A lot of Cornerians were still upset that O'Donnell was allowed to walk free, and now that she's recruiting CDF cadets and Star Fox members to do her dirty work, a lot of civil unrest had fallen upon the entire planet and Lylat System where several things have happened as a result, including an assassination attempt on O'Donnell herself; the offender was eventually apprehended, tried, and put in prison. The recruits were not entirely happy about the fact that they were working for the 'Terror of Corneria', but at least Miyu and Fay were there to keep an eye on her. They were also surprised that she would pick them out of all the thirty cadets who graduated in their class. What was their significance to her?

Regardless, Wolf had chosen her team and was ready to begin her new career. The only problem was that she no longer had a ship to operate from-not that she had one, to begin with. To solve this, General Pepper ordered the CDF to provide Wolf with a ship for her base of operations. Despite his direct orders, half of the naval commanders under his command were either demoted or suspended because they instead gave Wolf an old, beat up blockade-runner. Rather than being upset, Wolf surprised everyone by gladly accepting her ship-but on the inside, she was curled up on the floor of her conscience trying not to cry.

Wolf was currently in the ship's cargo bay, which was rather large in contrast to the actual ship and could serve as a makeshift hangar, deploying the team's fighters from a series of rafters above. The rafters were a series of catwalks with gaps large enough for the Arwings and one Wolfen to be stored. O'Donnell was trying to buff out some dents her Wolfen suffered from recent 'job opportunities' where several times she was almost blown up by intentional friendly-fire from CDF anti-air. The commanders in charge of those ships and their AA batteries dismissed the accusations, but since this 'incident' had occurred more than enough times to be not an accident, and the fact that there was supporting evidence against them, the commanders were removed from their positions by Pepper effective immediately. He declared that the CDF was to assist Wolf O'Donnell and cooperate with her, not find inexcusable excuses to kill her. He also stated that, should anyone willingly disobey these orders, they would be discharged from the service.

With Pepper watching her back and her every move, Wolf didn't have much to do besides sit around and be lazy all day. Or in this case, working on her battered Wolfen. The lupine sat on the nose of the aircraft, wiping the glass canopy to clear it of smudges and scorch marks it obtained in the past twelve years she's had it. She didn't do 'calm and peaceful', so to break the silence, she played some music from a weak transmission she intercepted from deep space. But it wasn't that different from Cornerian music, and it was just as catchy.

The hangar was filled with the heavy guitar solo of a song from a heavy metal band whose name slipped her mind as she was too focused on the repairing of her Wolfen I. The song, however, was cut short, much to Wolf's frustration. She grabbed her cleaning supplies and jumped off the Wolfen, landing on the catwalks with a grunt. Putting down the bottle of window cleaner and the roll of paper towels, Wolf walked over to the console and tried to bring back her song, only to be met with the face of the last person she wanted to see.

"Fox McCloud," she sneered with malice. "What do you want?"

The vulpine kept a straight face and said, "Enough of that, Wolf. General Pepper wants both of us for this."

"Why? And are we getting paid?" Wolf asked, wiping her paws on the sides of her pants.

Fox rolled her eyes, but replied, "I'm getting to that, and yes. Yes, we are. And in case you were wondering how much, it's fifty-thousand credits per team member."

"What's the occasion, Miss Know-It-All?"

"Captain Casey of the Third Fleet discovered a ship of unknown origin on the edge of the system. He claims that it was attacked by Venom."

Wolf stiffened and her sneer was wiped off her face. "But...but I thought they were gone? Kaput. Does this, Casey, have any proof?"

Fox nodded. "Yes, yes he does. It also shows us who Venom attacked. But first, you have to come aboard the Acolyte, Captain Casey's ship. We'll know more from there. And bring everyone on your team as well. McCloud out."

The screen switched off, leaving an empty hangar and a silent, grim Wolf O'Donnell. Her mind processed the information she'd just received from Fox. If what Casey said was true, then Corneria might be dealing with a new Venom leader, as well as making first -contact with a new alien species. She scoffed at the first part. 'Please', she thought as she cleaned up her working space and put on her vest, not bothering to zip it up. 'If Venom was under new leadership, then I would've been the first to know about it'.

Despite General Pepper's strict monitoring of her activities, he failed to tap into her comms, which were still connected to the Venomian battle net. The only ones who know about this currently were her team. She didn't trust anybody else but herself and her team. She turned and walked away from the console, deliberately forgetting about her Wolfen as one thing dominated her thoughts: money.

Fifty-thousand credits per team member for both Star Fox and Star Wolf. O'Donnell saw this as an opportunity to finally get some stuff done around the Radiance, such as new updated equipment, some defensive weaponry as well as offensive, and maybe, just maybe, a new fighter to replace her old Wolfen.

The CDF was constantly coming out with new tech and gear, including a state-of-the-art fighter prototype that was expected to be on the frontlines in a few days. Wolf wanted one of those older, but reliable, craft that was still in service today. She'd customize it to fit her personal preferences, and probably make a few tweaks to upgrade its performance.

Lost in her train of thought, Wolf didn't notice Fay rounding a corner and the two canids collided. "Oh!" Fay exclaimed. "I-I didn't see you there. Sorry." The white spaniel turned a beet-red as she nervously fiddled with her paws, eyes fixed on the grated floor. Wolf had always found Fay's shy nature amusing and somewhat adorable. But in the thick of battle, Fay proved herself to be an excellent pilot and marksman.

Wolf smiled kindly and pat Fay on the shoulder, then gestured for her to follow. "Don't worry about it. Come on; we've finally got a job to do. Fox just called in and said that some CDF captain found an 'unknown ship' that was supposedly attacked by Venom."

Fay's eyes widened slightly. "Really? But I thought-"

Wolf cut her off. "I thought they were gone for good too, but they're not. Let's talk to the team about this before we get into too much thought about it."

Fay nodded. "Okay. What do you think they'll say?"

Wolf shrugged. "Who knows? But I do know that they'll agree to this job once I tell them how much we're getting paid for it."

"How much are we getting paid?" Fay asked.

* * *

"Fifty-thousand credits?!" Sylvia Blackwood, a German Shepherd, exclaimed in surprise. "For each team member? That's...that's unbelievable. Are you sure that's what Fox told you?"

Wolf sighed and rolled her eyes. "Yes," she replied with slight annoyance. "I am sure."

"So, let me get this straight," cut in Anya, a serval, "we're going to an abandoned alien ship and boarding it?"

Wolf shook her head. "No, no, no! You don't understand. Fox McCloud said that we'll know more once we get aboard the Acolyte. Please don't ask any more questions about it because I don't know anything except for the fact that Venom might be behind the attack."

"Do you think that they're back now?" Miyu inquired. "That they're under new leadership?"

Wolf shrugged. "Beats me. I haven't gotten anything from my 'mole' here." She indicated to her wrist comm. "But I have a hunch that they are under new leadership. I could be wrong, though."

"So," Sylvia crossed her arms under her chest. "When do we leave?"

Wolf smirked and said, "Right now."

* * *

As the Third Fleet prepared to launch a search-and-rescue team, the USS Einstein drifted in the empty vacuum of space, the barren, stricken hull rolling on its axis at a constant rate of ten-degrees-per-hour. The Acolyte had scanned the ship and found that a single life form was onboard, but a vital-signs scan showed that there was a significant decrease in its food and water intake; two or three more days after the CDF showed up and it would have died. Good thing that never happened and the CDF showed up when they did. Casey deployed SFC Fara Phoenix as head of the rescue team. Fox and Wolf would provide back-up if Fara's team needed it.

While all this was happening, the last remaining survivor aboard the Einstein, James Beckham Hayes, roamed the halls of the once-bustling wreck that was his home away from home. James had survived the attack of lizards and apes through craftsmanship, wit, and the vents of the ship. One by one, he picked them off, until they decided to leave what they deemed as a haunted ship. He cremated the bodies of the Einstein crew, but jettisoned the attackers out the airlock; they had no honor in attacking a civilian ship, and therefore didn't deserve a proper sendoff. He also found a recording the captain had made before he was taken captive by the attackers. It was damaged, but James managed to clean it up and send it out via the USS Einstein's long-range transmitter in hopes of help arriving soon.

The attack damaged the main power unit, and despite James and Tim's efforts to fix it, they were only able to restore about twenty-five-percent of the normal energy output. That, plus the auxiliary, only added up to forty-five-percent effectiveness. The food dispensers, refrigerators, coolers, freezers, etc., all ran on the main power and did not work below seventy-five-percent. Soon, the frozen meat would thaw out and become rotten, so James had to be careful of opening the freezers and refrigerators to keep the cold in as much as possible. The A/C units were offline as well, and only the heater worked. But with space being cold all the time, the ship was nice and warm and cozy enough to keep James from freezing to death. The water still ran, but with the food starting to go bad after five days, James was stuck with MREs and mild constipation.

James spent the majority of the five days in the simulators, developing his fighting and piloting skills to have a better chance against the ones that attacked his ship and killed the entire crew, just in case they ever came back. He became pretty handy with a gun; in fact, he was skilled with sidearms, rifles, machine guns, sniper rifles, and shotguns, as well as hand-to-hand combat; armed and unarmed. His flying skills were so-so, with over three-hundred kills to four-hundred-seventy-one deaths, an accuracy of forty-three-percent, and a crash rate of fifty-two-percent. 'Not bad for a rookie', he thought to himself, one day after a round in the flight simulator.

Then, on the fifth and final day, James was working out in the ship's gym when he noticed a huge fleet of blue and white ships approaching the Einstein, and he nearly tripped and fell off the treadmill.

He got dressed into his engineer uniform, attached a holster for a sidearm to his right thigh and placed an AS-95 Tactical Handgun into it, and prepared for whatever could happen next. Tim, his drone companion, had attached himself to a ledge on the back of James's jumpsuit, and James wore the bot like a backpack. All James had to do now was to wait for whoever was out there to board and see if they were friendly or hostile; he hoped it was the former.

* * *

Sergeant First Class Fara Phoenix anxiously tapped her foot on the floor of the dropship, deep in thought. She was worried, anxious, and downright nervous. She had seen the video that was sent and shown to the entire Third Fleet and, to say the very least, she was shocked. The fact that Venom was still active and wreaking havoc shocked everyone, but Fara was more so when she found that whoever was attacked was a whole new species of an intelligent alien species. She felt bad for the people on the...whatever the ship was called. They were unprepared and outgunned by the Venomian forces, but at least they didn't go down without a fight. Whoever was left on that ship must have gotten lucky enough to get away and deal with them from the shadows, because as the shuttle made its way towards the alien ship, the shuttle pilot announced that there were numerous Venomian bodies drifting around lifelessly in the vicinity. Fara didn't know whether or not to feel joy or feel…frightened.

Fara was a fennec fox, about thirty-years-old, and was single. Being an NCO (non-commissioned officer), Fara didn't want to take the time to find her 'significant other'. She liked her job, more or less, but sometimes her subordinates and team would get on her nerves.

"Sergeant? Are you all right?" Fara looked up at one of the newest additions to her team, a young female maned wolf. "You seem a little nervous."

Fara smiled at the recruit. "Don't worry about me kid. We're all a little nervous here. We're about to board an alien ship, so I guess that's a good reason to be nervous."

"Do ya think there's anyone on it, Sarge?" a male panther asked in a slight Southern drawl.

"There is. But they're slowly dying from lack of food and water," Fara replied. "Luckily for them, we're going to save them before they do."

"What does the alien look like?" the maned wolf asked.

Fara shrugged. "We'll find out eventually."

The dropship entered the wrecked hangar of the alien ship, slowing down its approach and landing gracefully in an open spot cleared of any strewn equipment. The back hatch opened and lowered to the hangar floor, and Fara's team poured out and secured a perimeter around the dropship. Fara then signaled the team to move out and they cautiously followed her through the hangar that was filled with the strange-looking craft. The majority of the machines were large and bulky, with large engines and a payload that was enough to take out an entire small village, and were either painted in a dull grey or an olive drab color. Some other crafts were smaller and more streamlined, appearing to be fighters with swept or straight wings, and tons of ordnance strewn across the hangar floor.

Fara and her team were awed at the sight but later refocused themselves on the current mission at hand. They soon left the hangar behind and entered the empty, desolate corridors of the ship, where they found numerous telltale signs of a fight that had occurred before their arrival. "Plasma scoring," Fara declared, inspecting the scorch marks on the walls and floor. "Venomian weapons too." She turned to her team. "They are definitely behind this. Let's head to the bridge and see if we can find anything else there."

* * *

Nothing. They found absolutely nothing on the bridge save for the plasma scoring from before, some pools of dried blood, and oddly-shaped brass pieces that smelled faintly of gunpowder. Fara tried to turn on the main console monitor but with no luck. Venom shot up the entire system. But the maned wolf, Private Mara, discovered that someone had very recently been up here and took some needed parts from the consoles. The team left the bridge and explored the rest of the ship, where they encountered their first alien muzak; it was not that dissimilar from their own. They found the engine room, which was the largest part of the ship; the reactor, which had been completely disabled, possibly during the attack; the cafeteria; a simulator; then, finally, the Sublevel Deck, aka the guts of the ship itself.

"Ugh," groaned Mackenzie, the panther. "This place stinks and gives me the creeps. What is this exactly?"

"Cut the chatter, Mackenzie," Fara ordered, holding up her paw in a fist to halt the team. "I thought I heard something." They fell silent and listened; nothing but the hissing of steam and the creaking of the ship reached their ears.

Mackenzie gulped and began, "It's probably no-"

Crash!

Fara and her team primed their weapons and aimed towards the source of the noise. "Hello? Is anyone there? Show yourself!" Fara shouted. "Mara," she called over her shoulder, "with me. The rest of you split up into equal groups and search for whoever is here. Keep your eyes peeled and blasters ready. We don't know if this alien is a friend or a foe. Move out."

* * *

"...The rest of you split up into equal groups and search for whoever is here. Keep your eyes peeled and blasters ready. We don't know if this alien is a friend or foe. Move out." The heavy thumping of boots echoed in the halls of the Einstein's bowels and soon faded in the distance. James hid in the maintenance corridors below, waiting for the intruders to leave. Once he was sure they were gone, he carefully pushed a panel up from the floor and slid it open, allowing him to pull himself out of the restricting and claustrophobic maintenance corridor. He crouched low and slid the panel back into place, then looked around for any sign of the intruders. Finding none, he started in the direction that the fox-looking thing ran off with another canid creature. If he were to show himself to these aliens, then he would have to start small with the two that were by themselves together.

He slowed his pace to a walk and took care to take as light a step as possible, so he wouldn't give himself away sooner than he wanted to. But despite his best efforts, the boots he wore, along with the weight of Tim on his back, clanked on the grated floor. "So much for stealth," he said to himself. Tim shuddered at the nearly-empty silence, and James would jump now and then at the occasional hiss of steam. Then, he heard voices, and he stopped at the corner and poked his head around it.

He had found the duo, and up close, they were way more than what he was expecting: the leader was a big-eared, bushy-tailed animal of some sort, and they were talking to what looked to be a maned wolf, judging by the fur coloring and markings. Both 'aliens' appeared to be female, judging by the way their bodies were shaped. James shook his head and ducked back behind his cover and attempted to come up with a plan on what to do about these aliens. Tim detached from his perch and hovered next to him; his optics fixed on him. James looked at the bot questioningly, as if asking for a suggestion. Tim responded with a shrug. James shook his head with a quiet sigh before sneaking another peek around the corner at the two aliens, only to find that they had disappeared.

His eyes widened in a panic and he rushed out from behind his cover, only to kick a toolbox that had been conveniently left out in such a way that one could not see it as they rounded the corner until it was too late. The resulting clattering and clanging of the tools as they fell onto the grated metal floor echoed in the corridors for several seconds. James had flinched and was bracing his shoulders up as he waited for something else to happen. But nothing did. No sign of the aliens. He relaxed and let out a sigh of relief as he turned to Tim, but he was nowhere to be found. "Tim?" He whipped his head left and right toward either end of the hallway in search of his friend. But he had disappeared. James immediately became worried and he began a physical search for the little bot. He first headed towards where he last saw Tim, but no one and nothing was there. Then he went for the other end of the hallway where he had seen the two alien females and took a right. But when he rounded the corner, he ran face-first into the chest of one of the aliens.

He took a step back and looked up and gulped. It was a wolf of some kind, with grey and white fur, an eyepatch over her left eye, a ponytail draped over her right shoulder, and a rather menacing gaze as she glared down at him with her single violet-red eye. Panic set in once more and James turned on his heel to run the other way, but his arm was grabbed by the wolf and she pulled him back with a growl. "And just where do you think you're going?" James halted in his attempt to escape from her grasp and looked at her in disbelief. She gave him a strange look. "What?"

He couldn't believe it. He could understand every single word she was saying. Either he was imagining it, or she truly spoke full English. Her, an extraterrestrial being from another planet. What are the odds? Slim to none. And yet, here he was, being held by an alien wolf-thing, who looked more like a pirate than anything, that spoke one of humanity's main languages without any trouble. This day could not get any weirder. "Wolf?" Him and his big mouth. "What are you doing here? You're supposed to be back-up in case anything went—" 'Wolf' and James directed their attention from each other to who was speaking. James instantly recognized as the large-eared fox he was observing from afar. But what upset him was the fact that Tim was right alongside her. "…Wrong," she finished her sentence after an awkward silence. She then pointed at the human and the alien lupine without lifting her arm. "Why are you holding him like that?" After a brief silence, James felt the pressure on his forearm lessen and 'Wolf' took a step back.

James rubbed the sore spot on his arm and stared at the large-eared fox, which he deducted to be a fennec fox of some sort. The maned wolf from earlier was also there, just out of sight behind the fennec and Tim. The droid warbled something to the fennec, who looked at him and smiled. "Of course," she said, surprising James even further and prompting his jaw to drop slightly agape. The droid then made his way to James's side and place his wiry appendages on his back and push him towards the fennec. James resisted the droid and he hissed at him in German, something he had picked up in his spare time on the ship. Tim responded with a metallic growl and zapped him with a prick from his taser arm. James yelped and the brief break from resistance was enough for Tim to be able to shove the human forward and straight into the arms of the fennec, who caught him just before he fell flat on his face on the grated floor. When he looked up into the canine features of his 'rescuer', he was at a loss for words.

She had the brightest green eyes he had ever seen. Up close, that is. They stared down at him widely, taking his appearance that was – to their owner – strange and foreign. The fennec herself appeared to be unsure about what to make of him, her mouth opening and closing in an effort to form words to communicate with him. But, like James, she was at a loss for words. The lupine who was holding him captive earlier, however, had something to say. "Hey Phoenix. First non-homicidal alien you meet and already he's putting the moves on you." She followed up with a snarky chuckle. The fennec, 'Phoenix' as indicated by the lupine behind James, looked up from the human and glared at the lupine.

"Shut up O'Donnell. You looked like you were about to put the moves on him yourself." Amidst their exchanging of words, James realized something. Phoenix called the lupine 'Wolf' when she had a hold on his arm, and just now she said 'O'Donnell'. He put the two words together and got 'Wolf O'Donnell'. He frowned. How original. This was probably going to the most boring 'first contact' humanity will ever have. And by 'humanity', I mean James. He was expecting a name like 'Jar (Yar) L'ahar' or something similar. Instead, he has 'Wolf' and probably 'Fox' somewhere out there. This 'Phoenix' was probably 'Fennec Phoenix'. He wouldn't be surprised at this point. He wondered how many more of these 'animal aliens' were named after their Earth namesakes?

Regardless, James used this brief break in their attention on him to make a run for it. Before either of the aliens could stop him, he had disappeared down the corridors and made for the elevator. He was about 20 yards away when he was suddenly clothes lined and fell flat on his back, gasping for breath as the wind was knocked out of him. Standing over him was a pair of glaring, deep-blue eyes that belonged to a female lynx. As his lungs began to reinflate with air and he slowly recovered, a trio of heavy footsteps approached him from behind before coming to a stop and the wolf, fennec, and maned wolf stood over him. When he was able to breathe normally again, he managed to gasp out a single sentence: "I guess I got no choice than to go with you guys, right?" He added a weak smile, but when no one else joined him, he decided to black out then and there. What a day...


	4. Welcoming Committee

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wolf and Fox are given a simple task, although Wolf is less than happy to accept it. James meets Miyu, where she meets something interesting about him.

_Three days later…_

General Pepper stared out and observed Corneria City from the window to his office at the top floor of CDF HQ, his wrinkled, bloodhound face appearing to hold a somber expression. In reality, it was just the overlapping folds of his fur and skin, but he was indeed in a _somber_ state. The rumors about Venom rising up from the ashes shortly after the Anglar Blitz saddened the old bloodhound. However, the rumors about the subject was quickly being drowned out by the news of an all new alien species being discovered. But that was another reason for the aging general to get upset. It wasn't just a species - only a single specimen - but a ship, of which the 'single alien specimen' was the only survivor onboard after an alleged attack by Venom. All physical evidence and signs pointed towards Venom, all though they were thought to be long gone and extinct. But there was no doubt on Pepper's mind that small splinter-cell groups and remnants of the ill-fated, totalitarian and terroristic empire would be capable of, and have the audacity, doing such a thing as they did to the alien ship and its crew.

He let out a sigh and turned away from the window and walked to his desk and leaned on it with his arms. He stood there for several still, silent moments, deep in thought. Then he reached out with one hand and pressed a button on the intercom. It beeped once as he did and a small voice came through from the other end: "Yes sir?"

He deeply inhaled through his nose and let out it as he said, "Martha. Contact Fox McCloud and Wolf O'Donnell. I wish to speak with them."

A hesitant silence on Martha's end prompted Pepper to clear his throat and repeat his request, stirring the secretary on the ground floor from her slight shock. "Oh! Right. Of course. Right away, sir." Pepper released the button and sighed once more as he sat down in his chair, rubbing his temples vigorously. He was beginning to wonder if letting Wolf walk free after nearly ten years of committing crimes against Cornerian and her people of the Lylat was a good idea. On some days, he told himself that it was. Other days, like this one, he was second-guessing himself.

"Oh James," he muttered to the now-deceased fox who was his closest friend. "What am I going to do?"

* * *

Wolf lay in her bed half-naked and on her back, staring up at the ceiling as she tossed a rubber stress ball up in the air and caught it on its descent. She wasn't necessarily lost in deep thought, but she did have things on her mind that required a great deal of concentration on her part. One of them was that alien she and the others encountered three days ago. It was, _interesting_ , for lack of a better term. Furless, save for the blonde patch on the top of its head and dotting its jawline and around its mouth and chin, flat-faced like an ape but not as grotesque, and able to speak the main language of the Lylat clearly and without any difficulty. It also spoke a couple other languages, but none of them were familiar to her. Or to the others for that matter. It also had a robot companion that it liked to call 'Tim'. Wolf figured that it was either by itself on that ship for far too long, or it was all alone like she was, with no real friends to call its own. Just like her…

She shook her head at the thought and, in the process, missed the ball as it came down and smacked her square in the nose, causing her to yelp and sit up, clutching at her muzzle with one hand and grasping at the bedsheets with the other. _'Stupid piece of crap',_ she mentally grumbled to herself. Once the stinging sensation subsided, she released her muzzle and relaxed her grip on the bedsheets and sighed. Whatever this alien was, it was slowly beginning to occupy her every thought. For the past three days since it passed out after being unnecessarily clotheslined by Miyu, the alien lay in a hospital at one of the many military bases that dotted the area around Corneria. _'No doubt enjoying the attention it's attracting',_ muttered a part of her in slight envy. She kept telling herself 'better it than me', but in the end, she wanted a piece of all that attention too. She sighed sadly, her ears drooping. She looked over to her left at a picture frame that rested on a nightstand next to her bed and, for the first time since the last time she looked at it, smiled sincerely.

Upon closer inspection, one would see a wolf couple, a male and a female, with a little wolf pup shared between their cradling, loving arms. The pup had heterochromatic eyes, one red-violet, one cloudy grey, and a streak of bare flesh over the grey eye, giving the impression that it was a scar. Wolf scooted closer and took the picture into her hands and stroked at the two parents' face with her thumb. "I miss you," she said under a shaky breath, tears blurring her vision and her throat tightening as she tried to hold back a sob. The photo was taken when she was but a year-old, and a day before her parents were unfortunately caught up in the midst of a war's outbreak; a war that would spark a young scientist's dangerous and treasonous ambitions and illegal experiments. The loss was what led to her growing so bitter and anti-social later on in her life. She sniffed and wiped her nose with her arm, immediately regretting it and letting out a sound of disgust at the matted fur covered in mucus. "Son of a…" She didn't get to finish her curse for her wrist comm went off with several rapid, obnoxious beeps. Wolf set down the frame on the bed and got up and walked over to the device lying on her dresser drawer and answered it.

"Yes, who is it?" The voice on the other end was the last person she expected to hear from:

"This is General Pepper, Katherine." She winced when the bloodhound used her real name out loud. She'd been using her alias 'Wolf' for so long, that her birth name sounded foreign to her. "I need to speak to you. Be at my office in thirty minutes. It's urgent." He disconnected before she even had the chance to ask why, leaving her clueless as to what he wanted to talk to her about. She sighed and shook her head as she got dressed into her usual attire of a purple vest, black t-shirt, grey pants and boots, and a pair of black fingerless gloves, and walked out of her bedroom with the wrist device in her hands. Whatever it was that Pepper wanted to talk to her about, it must have been really important. And it wasn't because he said that it was 'urgent', although Wolf did have a feeling that it was a little more than just that.

She left the _Radiance_ in her shoddy, barely-flyable Wolfen I and flew towards the CDF HQ, the aircraft sputtering and spitting out smoke along the way.

* * *

James was beginning to get tired of all the flowers and balloons and 'get well' cards he was receiving from all these animal aliens for the past three days since he's been in the hospital at some military base on some distant planet far away from his home. Sure, he appreciated the gesture, but it was kind of weird and disturbing that complete and total strangers, who were also aliens, were concerned about his well-being. It was nice, but weird at the same time. It also didn't help that a few females that happened to 'pass by' the window were giving him the same hungry looks that the girls back on the _Einstein_ and on Earth. Especially that one alien who just so happened to be the same one who'd clotheslined him three days ago. He later discovered, about a day in of his stay at the hospital, that her name was Miyu Lynx. Fitting, as she was an actual lynx, bearing all the markings and colorings of the medium-sized wild cat of North America. Whenever she 'passed by', she really stopped halfway and peered into the window with her hands cupped over her eyes in order to get a better look at him. Those blue eyes that stared at him with a lustful hunger made James feel uneasy, but he eventually grew to ignore it for the first two days. Today, however, was different. And a bit inconvenient for him.

On the third, and apparently final, day he was in the hospital, 'Miyu' accompanied the nurse, who was charged with James's health, into his room and remained a few feet away from the bed while the nurse went through with the morning check-up on James's physical health and the upkeep of the machinery he was hooked up to, the lynx's blue eyes staring at him with an innocent expression but hiding a darker, deeper desire that lay hidden underneath. He tried to hide the nervousness that was welling up inside him, but he knew that he was probably failing miserably. The nurse, a zebra who went by the name of 'Winona', was unaware of James and Miyu's visual exchange as she finished up her morning check-up on the human. When she was satisfied that everything was in working order, and that James was still healthy and able-bodied, she turned to Miyu with a stern expression, forcing her to break her eye contact with James and look at the nurse with anticipation.

"Ms. Lynx, I am happy to say that he is in a healthy state and ready to be discharged from the hospital. However, I will also say that _you_ are _restricted_ from coming into any form of close contact with him. That includes, but is not limited to: touching, hugging, kissing, holding hands, or, heaven forbid, getting _intimate_ with him. Who knows what alien diseases he's carried with him from wherever he's from?" The nurse turned to James with a sorrowful look. "No offense."

James just shrugged and didn't say a word. The nurse went on. "I will get the doctor to finalize your discharge, sir. In the meantime, Miyu Lynx here will be your company and escort out of the hospital. Unlike the other girls out there, she's more self-controlled than one would think at first glance." He looked at Miyu, who flashed him a toothy smile and winked at him. He let out a short, nervous laugh. "Play nice, Miyu. I don't want you to infect him or vice versa because you decided to 'let loose' on him." She gave Miyu the 'I've got my eye on you' gesture with her hoof, which puzzled to James as to how she was able to hold that clipboard and manipulate certain objects like knobs, handles, and _pens_ of all things, before turning and heading out the door, leaving James all alone with Miyu.

He gulped as he slowly swiveled his head towards her and they locked eyes with each other. She licked her lips and gave him a single raising of her eyebrows as she stood up and casually climbed onto his hospital bed and straddled his waist. She then leaned forward and placed her hands on either side of his head and touched noses with him. James gulped and closed his eyes, waiting for the inevitable to happen. But it never did. Instead, he got this:

"Hi!" James peeled his eyes open and found Miyu sitting up straight with a wide, friendly smile plastered on her short, feline muzzle. Her hands were now resting on his chest, but she was still straddling him and lightly wiggling her hips, which was actually just her wagging her bobtail back and forth. He quirked one of his eyebrows in bewildered confusion as he attempted to contemplate what exactly just happened. One minute he was expecting to get boned by a horny alien, the next he found himself looking up at said alien who was now acting like an innocent child. His brain was trying to wrap up the situation, but it was too big of a mess to clean up.

Miyu eagerly waited for him to answer, and when he didn't do so right away, her enthusiastic demeanor slowly began to fade away into a disappointed frown. But she quickly perked right up again when he finally shook his head and let out a nervous, "Hello."

She smiled wider and her tail picked up speed again. "My name's Miyu. What's yours?"

James took a deep breath and let it out as a sigh and replied a bit more calmly, "I'm James, James Hayes. But you can just call me James."

She giggled softly and her blue eyes lit up with a childish joy. "Well, 'James', I just want to say that, on behalf of all Cornerians – present and all – thanks for not wanting to kill us all at first sight."

James's eyes widened and he tilted his head to the side. "Why on Earth would I do such a thing? What made you say that?"

She shrugged. "Well, you're the first alien we've ever had in three years who hasn't acted hostile towards us upon arriving in the Lylat. That and, well, you wanting to seek vengeance for your fellow crewmates on your ship…" Her smile faded and her eyes adopted a sad look as she gazed at him sadly. "Right?"

James was taken aback by her assumption, but he knew that she wasn't wrong. He wanted nothing more than to go after whoever killed his ship and his father's close friend; the captain. However, he was skeptical and hesitant to travel down that road. He's seen way too many films and read too many stories to know how pursuing revenge would destroy the person seeking it. He didn't want to ruin himself by doing such a thing. He sighed and bowed his head as if ashamed by her words. But in reality, he was thinking about what to say to Miyu in response. Finally, with the words ready to be spoken, he looked up at her and said, "You're not wrong, Miyu. I do want to avenge my crewmates, _and_ my captain. But I know enough about that road to not want to travel it. I want justice, but I'll get it in time. Meanwhile, I just want to know where I'm going to be staying once I get out of the hospital." He gave her a small smile, to which she blushed at. "I'd also like a tour of the city whenever I get the chance. Maybe you would like to do the honors?"

She blushed even harder and she smiled bashfully at James. "Well, I don't know if I can, considering my 'restrictions'. But if I am able to, then I wouldn't have it any other way." Then, like a sudden flip of a switch, her childish demeanor disappeared and was replaced with the one from before when she first entered the room. "And, once we're finished with the tour, perhaps I can offer my place for you to crash at." She placed her hands to either side of his face on the pillow and leaned forward until they were touching noses once more. "Then we'd have the bed all to ourselves. Just me. And _you_. Alone in bed and going at it like a pair of—"

"Miyu Lynx! Get off of him this instant!" shrieked a shrill, female voice, startling both James and Miyu with the announcement, and causing Miyu to let out a frightened yowl and fall off the hospital bed. James almost laughed at this, but he didn't want to be rude and held his tongue. The speaker was the supposed doctor who was in charge of checking James out of the hospital, and a rather stern one at that. She was a red squirrel, dressed in military fatigues designed for a hospital setting, and had dazzling amethyst eyes that burned with a fierce passion that told one who would look into them that she enjoyed her job more than life itself and that she would do anything to keep it. She had a stethoscope hanging around her neck, and her hands were on her hips like a mother scolding their unruly child, and that child was Miyu, who sat on the floor rubbing her head and glaring at the doctor.

"Gee, thanks for the warning, Tammy," Miyu said sarcastically as she got up and dusted herself off.

'Tammy', the squirrel, tsked and shook her head as she made her way to James's bedside. "You know better than to mingle with my patients, Miyu. Especially this one. He could've given you an STD or some other plague that we do not have a cure for. No offense, Mr. Hayes."

James shrugged to the repeated statement, saying, "It's fine. None taken. And please, call me 'James'."

Tammy's serious and hardened expression was immediately wiped away and she appeared to be suddenly smitten with him as she giggled. "Oh please. You're being too modest, Mr. Hayes. I address all of my patients by their titles and not their first names. It's always been a thing with me, for some reason." She traced a clawed digit down the middle of his chest as she smiled sultrily at him, much to Miyu's, and James's, unbelief. "You know, Mr. Hayes, you're _really cute_. Why don't we grab a bite at my place once you get out of here? A welcoming treat from a hard-working citizen of Corneria." James gulped when she began to slowly lean forward and towards his face, her eyes closed and her furry lips pursed. He silently looked to Miyu for help, who understood immediately with a quick nod and tapped Tammy on the shoulder. The squirrel's eyes snapped open and she quickly shook her head and put a hand to it as if she were dizzy. "Oh my…what, what happened? I was just talking to Mr. Hayes here and then all of a sudden I just… _lost control_." She looked at Miyu, then at James, to whom she gave an apologetic look. "Please forgive me, Mr. Hayes. I don't know what came over me."

James slowly nodded and smiled sheepishly. "It's okay, Tammy. It's not the first time that's happened, and I doubt it's going to be the last." When Miyu and Tammy both looked at him in puzzlement, he sighed and clarified. When he had finished, they stared at him with wide eyes. "So, I guess I better be isolated someplace, right?"

Tammy shook her head and cleared her throat. "No, that won't be necessary. I'm just…surprised at how you've managed to stay _untouched_ all these years, Mr. Hayes. I have to say, your kind are strange beings indeed and, needless to say, fascinating." She stood up and brushed off her jacket, then said, "Well then, I believe that concludes my part. You are free to go, Mr. Hayes. Just come to the front desk and sign some papers, then you may leave." She flashed him a quick smile before ducking out of the room, leaving James and Miyu to themselves. The lynx was still befuddled by James's explanation from mere moments ago, but she snapped back to reality when James waved a hand in front of her face.

She stared at him and shook her head, her mouth slightly ajar in a half-smile. "I don't believe it, James. You're an actual chick magnet, and like Tammy said, it's a wonder how you're still a virgin right now." She chuckled. "Well, I guess we should get going. We've got lots of places to go and see, and so little time to do it in."

James smiled as he sat up and threw off the covers, revealing his hospital scrub outfit underneath. "I couldn't agree more, Miyu. But first, uh," he looked down at himself then up at Miyu. "Where can I find my clothes?"

* * *

Wolf glared at Fox the entire elevator ride up to General Pepper's office. She couldn't believe that she was here with her arch-rival. Most of all, she couldn't believe that Pepper also called Fox to talk to him as well. She let out a huff and continued to glare at the vulpine out of the corner of her right eye. After running out of resentment to send Fox's way, Wolf sighed and stared ahead of her at the glowing, holographic keypad on the wall. However, her attention was brought from that and back to Fox when the vulpine cleared her throat and began a rather lengthy conversation with Wolf:

"So, the General call you too?" she said, looking over at Wolf.

The lupine glanced at Fox out the corner of her eye and stared at her in silence before looking forward. After a beat of silence, she replied, "Yeah. I wasn't expecting it, and I certainly wasn't expecting _you_ to show up, either."

"Life's full of surprises, isn't it?" Fox asked with a light chuckle.

Wolf snorted in slight amusement. "Yeah, it is. Especially when it comes to that alien I found on the ship."

Fox raised an eyebrow at her. " _You_ found the alien? How'd you do that? I thought it was Fara or Miyu who found it?"

"Well," Wolf rocked her head from side to side. "More like, he ran into me and found me."

Fox raised the other eyebrow. "'He'? It's a 'he', now? What, did he tell you or…" She leaned closer to Wolf and dropped to a whisper. "Did he _show_ you?"

Wolf gave Fox an appalled expression. "'Show' me? How and why did you come to _that_ conclusion? Of course he didn't show me! It was very obvious that the alien was male, body-structure-wise, anyway. _And_ when he talked to that robot that follows him around, the voice was masculine."

Fox stared at her in a somewhat stunned silence before slowly donning a smile on her face and giving Wolf a sly look. "Sounds like someone was paying very close attention to this _alien_. Did you catch his name, too?"

Wolf glared at Fox and snapped at her with a light snarl. " _No_ , I didn't. He ran off and got owned by Miyu just as he was about to make his escape."

"Owned by Miyu how?" Fox asked, intrigued.

"Stuck her arm out and clotheslined him. Knocked him out cold, too." Wolf relaxed slightly and sighed. "Couldn't even get an explanation as to what happened on that ship, thanks to her."

Fox chuckled and softly bumped Wolf in the arm with her elbow. "Hey, don't worry about him. I'm sure he's all right. It's been three days after all. Besides," she placed an arm around her shoulder, "no one's going to messing around with your future boyfriend while I'm around to say anything about it."

The conversation ended with the two of them scuffling around in the elevator, rocking it back and forth and straining the cables, yipping and yelping and growling as they did so. When the elevator finally arrived on the top floor and the doors opened, they were a breathless mess, fur all shoddy and ruffled, and their clothes practically falling off of their bodies. They didn't bother to fix themselves up as they walked out of the elevator and into Pepper's office. When they entered the office and the doors closed behind them, Pepper was giving them a wide-eyed look. But he didn't attempt to address the issue:

"I…I don't know what happened on your way up here, but I'm not going to even bother about it. I'm just glad that, ahem, you both came here on such short notice."

Wolf stepped forward, her hands on her hips. "What's so urgent that you called us both here, Pepper? Is it about that alien from a couple days ago?"

"Yeah," Fox echoed, crossing her arms over her chest. "Does it concern it—I mean, _him_?"

Pepper nodded with a tired sigh. "Yes, I am afraid it does."

"How do you mean by that?" Fox inquired. "You say it like that's a bad thing."

"Forgive me for being for sounding pessimistic, Fox, but it might as well be a bad thing."

Fox and Wolf looked at each other with puzzled expressions. Then Wolf looked at Pepper and said, "What makes you say that?"

The old bloodhound was silent for a moment before he sighed and turned towards the window behind him and stared out into the horizon. "This alien, this… _'James Beckham Hayes'_ , is an interesting character. But I am more concerned about my personnel who've come into contact with him." Again, Fox and Wolf gave each other puzzled looks. Pepper sighed again. "I don't know what to make of 'James', but I believe that he may, or may not be, a threat to our existence. Now, I know that he is the survivor of an alleged Venom attack on his ship, but we can't be too careful."

"If you believe that he's a threat to us, sir," Fox began, uncrossing her arms and taking a single step forward. "Why keep him around? I'm not saying kill him or set him free, but I am wondering why we're keeping him here?"

"Yeah," Wolf piped in, stepping up next to Fox. "Why?"

"Because we have no other choice," Pepper said as he slowly turned to them. "Now, today is when he is released. I sent Lynx to pick him up and bring him here. From there, we will all discuss his being provided a place to stay for the duration that he is here. They should be here within the hour. Although, considering her attitude towards males these days, I think we can expect them later."

* * *

True to Pepper's words, James and Miyu did arrive later; about three hours later. But it was for a different reason than what Pepper had assumed. As they had originally agreed to back at the hospital, Miyu took him on a tour of Corneria City, parading him around to the public as she did. But thanks to T1M and some last-minute upgrades that James made to the little bot, the human was one with the Cornerians. To any member of the general populace, James was just an ordinary red fox, with black 'gloves' and 'socks' on his hands and feet respectively, and wore his human clothing. And with the unforgettable yet important feature that was his 'tail', no one ever suspected a thing. Miyu, however, was having a hard time containing herself, thanks to James's new appearance. Every now and then, the thought of jumping his bones in an alley crossed her mind, and every time she thought against it. She was here on Pepper's orders, and she wasn't about to let her over-heightened senses mess with her head. Meanwhile, James was taking in the sights like a child on Christmas morning, or at a candy store; whichever works best to describe his fascination with the Cornerian infrastructure and culture.

After walking around the city for about two-and-a-half-hours, Miyu told James that it was time to go. When he looked at her and asked why, she didn't reply as a black, limo-like vehicle pulled up next to her. Then she opened the door and said "Get in." The next thing he knew twenty minutes later, he was sans-disguise at the foot of the tallest skyscraper in the city, which he soon came to find out that it was the 'Cornerian Defense Force Headquarters', then on an elevator to the top where Miyu told him that he was to meet someone very important. When the doors opened and they stepped out into an office, James almost stopped in his tracks when he saw that 'Wolf O'Donnell' was present at his so-called 'important meeting'. They locked eyes for what was supposed to be a brief moment, but they found themselves staring at each other for longer than was necessary until finally being brought back to reality by a really old bloodhound dressed in a red officer's uniform with dozens of medals and ribbons pinned to the front of it clearing his throat. Standing next to Wolf and in front of the heavily-decorated bloodhound was an orange-furred fox. She wore a green shirt underneath her unzipped white vest, a pair of tan cargo pants, a pair of grey boots, and had a red ascot tied loosely around her neck. Her green eyes searched the human curiously, flicking up and down and around his entire form.

The bloodhound cleared his throat again and stepped forward towards James with his hand extended in greeting. "Welcome to Corneria, Mr. Hayes. I am General Pepper, Supreme Commander of the Cornerian Defense Force, or CDF for short. I would like to offer my sincere condolences to the loss of your crewmates and captain. I know what it's like to lose good people."

James accepted the offered hand and shook it in greeting. "Thank you, sir. That means a lot. And please, call me 'James'. 'Mr. Hayes' is my father. Well, used to be. It's now Commander Hayes of the ESCCF, 'Earth Space Command of the Colonial Fleet' for short."

Pepper's brown eyes twinkled as he beamed at James. "Well, from one military brat to another, welcome." He withdrew his hand and wrapped an arm around James's shoulder. "Allow me to introduce three of my trusted acquaintances." He then gestured to the fox, who bowed her head slightly and smiled at him. "This is Fox McCloud, leader of the legendary mercenary team Star Fox. Her father and her mentor were close friends of mine. May their souls rest in peace." He pointed with an open hand at the wolf. She only gave James a snort through her nose. "This is Wolf O'Donnell. She's the leader of a more notorious group known as 'Star Wolf'. She is known for being a bit, uh, _harsh_ to some people who get on her nerves. But a good person nevertheless." Wolf rolled her eye at this. "And finally, but certainly not least, Miyu Lynx. But I'm sure you've already met her."

Miyu gave James a small wave and a cheerful grin. James returned the wave. Pepper then removed his arm from the human's shoulder and walked over to his desk, his tone taking a serious and grave turn when he spoke. "Now with that out of the way, I'm afraid we have to cut this meeting short. Venom is still out there, and we need to find them. James, you will need a place to stay for the duration of your time here with us on Corneria. However, we need to keep your existence a secret until you and I are ready to come forward. With that being said, I'm charging both O'Donnell and McCloud with your safety and wellbeing." Miyu and Wolf, though James did not see it, donned surprised expressions. "They will also be in charge of giving you a place to stay at one of their homes in the outskirts of the city or on their respective ships. One or both of them will be keeping an eye on you at all times. Is this acceptable with you, James?"

James looked at both Fox and Wolf, the former with a neutral face and the latter with her mouth slightly parted as if to protest against Pepper's terms, then at Pepper and nodded. "Yes, sir. I'm fine with this. But I do have one question."

"Ask away, my boy."

"Most of my clothing and luggage is still on the _Einstein_ , my ship. How do you suppose when I'll get it back?"

Pepper smiled warmly, like a grandfather would to his little grandchildren. "Don't worry, James. I've already taken care of that. In the meantime, Lynx, McCloud and O'Donnell will escort you out of here and the city to maintain discretion of your existence. Your first official night on Corneria will be spent at McCloud's home. Good day."

* * *

McCloud's home was not much to look at, but it was decently sized for a one-story house. The exterior of the building was very reminiscent of a house from Earth's 21st Century style of buildings. The sight made his chest tighten in nostalgia and homesickness. The interior didn't make him feel any better, though. But he was really good at hiding his emotions around other people – humans actually; surely Cornerians couldn't be any more different. If only he had taken into account that Cornerians, like their feral Earth counterparts, could detect scents. Well, the canines could, anyway. But unlike the ferals back on Earth, Cornerians could also pick up emotions that were associated with their own scent. With that in mind, Fox and Wolf immediately knew that something was wrong with him as soon as they had arrived at the former's residence.

Nostalgia and homesickness aside, James grew accustomed to his new environment rather quickly, much to his two supervisors' surprise. The food wasn't all that different; in fact, it pretty much tasted the same, even if it was made on an alien planet halfway across the galaxy. The bedding and such was comfortable, and yet, despite that, James always lost sleep almost every night. Nightmares and dreams of his home and family plagued his slumber and when he awoke, he dreaded the moment when he would have to close eyes to rest. Fox and Wolf also sensed that too, but only Fox took the initiative to sit down with James and talk about whatever it was that ailed him. He wasn't very comfortable with the idea, especially since she was a woman and her rarely ever talked to women, let alone alien women, but he told her regardless about him missing his home and his family, and asking what had he done wrong that let him to deserve this particular predicament. While Fox wasn't the counseling-type, she listened to each and every one of James's words with open ears and an open mind. She began to feel sorry for him as he went on about living a rather reclusive childhood that eventually grew with him well into his adult years. In fact, everything that he said reminded her of a certain lupine, and she nonchalantly glanced to where said lupine was lurking behind a corner before they ducked away.

Once James had finished with his life-story, Fox pursed her lips in thought as she searched for words to say. Unsuccessful, all she managed out was: "I don't know what to say, James." She shook her head in utter disbelief at what she had just heard. "That's just…awful. I apologize for the lack of a better term, but I have no better way to describe what you've gone through." She sighed and lowered her head a little. "I can only think of one other person who's suffered as you have, but I'm not obligated to say exactly who it was. I will say this, however," she added as she looked up at James and offered him a kind, sympathetic smile. "You're not alone in this. You've got a bunch of strangers, 'aliens from another planet', who've got your back. We're all going to help you through with this, and hopefully, maybe, get back at Venom before they cause any more damage." She placed a hand on his shoulder, causing the human to shudder at the – no pun intended – alien contact of a _woman_ , other than his mother, touching him in a comforting manner. "As I said, you're not alone."

James wasn't usually the one to make conversation; his reclusive attitude during all his years in public school, from elementary to high school to college, was to thank for that. He also wasn't the emotional type of person. But when Fox spoke those words to him as she looked at him in the way his mother used to when she comforted him in his time of need, he almost broke down then and there. A few stray tears found their way down his face, but he quickly wiped them away with his shirt sleeve, letting out a loud sniff as he did. He looked up at the Cornerian, who was easily taller than him by a foot or so, and gave her a weak smile. "Thank you for understanding, Fox. I'm not usually the kind of person who opens up to a complete stranger. No offense."

Fox returned the smile, but with a bit more ecstasy than his. "None taken. And, James? It's okay. It's always nice to open yourself up to others who are willing to listen. Like me. I understand what you've gone through, and while I can't say that I've been where you are now, I sympathize with you. It's also nice getting to know a little bit more about you." She squeezed his shoulder and flashed her pearly white fangs as her smile grew wider. "Why don't you go and try to get some rest, okay? I think this talk might have eased the burden on your shoulders; therefore ridding you of your nightmares and such."

James let out a shuddering sigh and nodded. "Okay. I will. Again, thank you so much for listening to me, Fox."

With that, he got up from the couch and walked to his room. On the way, he passed by Wolf, who had her arms crossed over her chest and her violet-red eye fixed on the floor. She looked up when he traveled into her line of sight and watched him as he disappeared into his room. As soon as the door had closed, Wolf walked into the living room and glared at Fox. "Just what do you think you're doing, McCloud?" she snarled softly. "We're under orders, you know that?"

Fox tilted her head at the lupine curiously. "What ever do you mean, Wolf? I know we're under orders and all, but I was just trying to be a helping hand to someone who's experienced a very traumatic experience." Then she raised an eyebrow at her and smirked. "Or do you think I'm just trying to steal your future mate?"

Wolf gawked at Fox in disbelief and blinked several times before she finally found her voice. "Are you kidding me?!" she said a little too loudly. She advanced several steps towards the vulpine, who didn't flinch one bit as she did. "Listen here, McCloud, and listen closely because I'm only going to say this once. I'm. Not. Interested. In. Finding. A. _Mate._ And even if I was, no one would bother with someone like me because of my past. Now, as for you and your insinuations, I don't trust this guy. Not one bit. Why? Because we're supposed to treat him like he could turn on us any moment. He's an _alien_ for goodness sake! General Pepper himself said not to trust this guy at all."

"That's _not_ what he said, Wolf," Fox countered calmly. "While James may be an alien, we're supposed to show him as much hospitality as possible so he can trust _us_. And if he trusts _us_ , then maybe he won't turn on _us_. Got it? Now, I'm just trying to be an example for you, because you're the one on probation and whatnot for dozens, no, _hundreds_ of crimes you've committed. Do I agree with the general's decision to let you walk? No, of course not. But do I respect his judgement in giving you a second chance in life after having everything taken away from you? Yes." Wolf's snarling mug softened to a simple frown. Fox then stood up and put both hands on either of the lupine's shoulders. "Listen to _me_ now, Wolf. I'm just trying to be the example of the extended hand of friendship and kindness, and I want you to at least try to do that. If not for James, then for me, your _partner_. Okay? Promise?"

Wolf attempted to glare at Fox, but failed and sighed, bowing her head. "Fine. I promise," she murmured.

Fox smiled and removed her hands from her. "Good. Now go wash up for dinner. I'm ordering some takeout tonight. Want anything special?" Wolf shook her head as she spun on her heel and walked away. Fox sighed and shook her head before going into the kitchen. "Oh, dad. What am I going to do?"


End file.
